The Master's University Men's Basketball

Coaching and Playing Career Awards: NABC-NAIA Division 1 Coach of the Year (17-18) 3x GSAC Coach of the Year (05-06, 17-18, 18-19) Highlights: Starr completed his 10th season as head coach at TMU in 2025-26 and holds a record of 238-71 (.770). The team made its fourth consecutive national tournament appearance at the end of the season. He won his 300th game of his coaching career on Nov. 16, 2024, with a 71-67 win over No. 2 College of Idaho. He won his 200th game with TMU on Dec 14, 2025, knocking off Montana Western 91-64. The Mustangs returned to the NAIA National Tournament in 2024 for the second year in a row, making it to the Round of 16. Coach Starr earned his 150th win with The Master's on Nov. 3, 2022, with an 81-74 victory over Oklahoma City University. His teams have been ranked No. 1 in the NAIA more than once during his tenure and he led the Mustangs to four consecutive NAIA national tournament appearances from 2017-20.  In 2016-17, Starr's first season, the Mustangs won 27 games and advanced to the second round of the NAIA national tournament. This after the program had won four games in 2015-16 and missed the NAIA tournament every year since 2000. In 2017-18, TMU finished the year 29-3, winning its second-straight GSAC Tournament title and the first GSAC regular season championship in program history.  The Mustangs won a program-record 25-straight games from Nov. 4, 2017, to Feb. 17, 2018. They also won a TMU record 47 consecutive home games between 2017 and 2020. In 2018-19, Master's won both the GSAC regular season and GSAC Tournament titles for the second-straight season. A native of Sydney, Australia, Starr formerly worked as executive pastor at Seven Church San Diego in Lakeside, Calif. Along with his ministry responsibilities (starting in March 2014), he served as the director of operations for the Top Gun Basketball Academy in San Diego from 2013 to 2015. Starr’s coaching career began in 1996 when he was hired as an assistant basketball coach at Christian Heritage College (now San Diego Christian College), a position he held until 2002. During that six-year period, the Hawks won the National Christian College Athletic Association national title twice (1997, 1998) and made it to the NAIA Final Four in 2001. Named head coach at Christian Heritage in 2002 and proceeded to craft a 104-60 record over the next five years. In that window, he coached the Hawks to another NCCAA national crown (2004), Top 25 NAIA rankings in 2005 and 2006 and NAIA national tournament appearances in 2006 and 2007. Led the Hawks to the program’s first-ever GSAC regular-season championship, a 24-6 overall record and a No. 7 national ranking in 2006-07.  Named NCCAA Coach of the Year in 2004-05 and GSAC Athletic Director of the Year in 2006-07. Leaving San Diego Christian in the summer of 2007, Starr took over the coaching reins at Christian High School in El Cajon, while also assuming responsibilities as director of Sports and Recreation Ministry at Shadow Mountain Community Church. Starr graduated from Christian Heritage College where he played basketball and earned his bachelor's of science in physical education in 1996 before completing an M.Ed. from Azusa Pacific University. He and his wife, Heather, have three boys.

Coaching and Playing Career Leaf completed his fifth season on the TMU Men’s Basketball coaching staff, and fourth as associate head coach, in 2025-26. He previously served as an assistant coach in 2016-17. During the 2016-17 season, he was part of a coaching staff that oversaw the biggest turnaround in college basketball history, improving from four wins the season prior to 27, and won the program’s first-ever GSAC Tournament title. From 2017-22, worked in player development and skills training in the NBA with multiple players from the Indiana Pacers, as well as current professionals in China, Japan and Lithuania. Previous coaching experience also includes coaching Compton Magic 17u team from 2015-18, winning the 2018 AAU national championship. That team included two future top-10 NBA Draft picks and eight NCAA Division I players. He also served as associate head coach at Foothills Christian High School during the 2015-16 season, winning the CIF Open Division title before reaching the State Open Division semifinals. Played one year at UC Santa Barbara in 2010-11, winning the Big West Conference championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament. He then transferred to Azusa Pacific University (2012-15) where he was a three-time All-Pac West First Team selection. As a senior, Leaf was named Pac West Player of the Year, West Region Player of the Year and a First Team All-American, leading the Cougars to the west region title and a national quarterfinal appearance in NCAA Division II. Graduated from APU in 2015 with a bachelor's degree in sociology. Comes from a basketball family – Father Brad played 17 professional seasons in Israel before coaching high school for over 20 years and winning eight CIF championships, while brother TJ was a first-round draft pick of the Indiana Pacers in 2017 and currently plays professionally in China. Coach Leaf and his wife Jasmine welcomed their daughter Olive Mimi Leaf on May 3, 2023.

Coaching and Playing Career Lowery will enter his fourth season as a TMU men's basketball's assistant coach in 2022-2023. Has coached club basketball for over 20 years, girls varsity hoops for six years and boys varsity for three years (as an assistant with vaunted Foothills Christian of El Cajon, California). As a student-athlete in 2001, Lowery was an NCCAA All-American at Christian Heritage College (now San Diego Christian). He previously played NCAA Division 1 basketball at San Jose State.  Lowery is the father of six children and an eight-year veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He is married Laura.